ThyssenKrupp reclassifies ’waste’ slag as product

Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Steel has been given the go-ahead by the country’s government to classify its blast furnace slag as a product rather than waste, a step that will ease the bureaucratic burden on its manufacture and sal  - reports UK-based Metal Bulletin.

The environment ministry reached a deal according to which air-granulated and blast furnace slags will not be considered waste under the Closed Substance Cycle & Waste Management Act.

ThyssenKrupp Steel has been supplying air-cooled and granulated blast furnace slag to customers in the cement and construction industries for many decades.

"[This agreement] recognises our measures for the targeted production of these materials," said Karl-Ulrich Köhler, executive board chairman of ThyssenKrupp Steel. "The transportation, storage and further use of the products will be greatly simplified, both at the manufacturer and at customers."

ThyssenKrupp Steel produces around 2.7Mta of granulated slag and 500,00 of air-cooled slag, all of which is sold on the market.

The products are specifically manufactured in connection with steel production and are subject to corresponding industry standards. Internal and external quality assurance programmes guarantee that the materials meet customers’ high requirements.

Air-cooled blast furnace slag is used in road building, where it offers special advantages: roads built with this slag increase in load-bearing capacity over the years due to the self-hardening properties of the material.